Looking for the perfect scone recipe? According to food experts, if you swap two ingredients in your recipe you’ll get the perfect bake every time
Baking can be a bit of a minefield, with some recipes seeming more like a science experiment than a fun kitchen activity. But if you’re after something simple and foolproof, scones are your best bet.
The joy of scone-making lies in its simplicity – one bowl, a handful of ingredients, a quick stir, and you’re pretty much there. The usual suspects include flour, caster sugar, milk, and an egg, but food gurus suggest that swapping out two of these could take your scones to new heights. They propose giving butter and milk the boot, and instead, welcoming cream and lemonade into the mix.
While many recipes swear by cold butter as the secret to a top-notch scone, it can be a right faff to blend it into your flour, especially if you’re going old school and using your hands.
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So, to save you time and arm strength, experts recommend subbing in cream. Not only will it merge effortlessly with the flour, but it’ll also lend your scones a heavenly softness, reports the Express.
Cream brings a luxurious richness to the bake, promising a moist, tender crumb and a gorgeous golden crust when baked.
King Arthur Baking reveals: “Using heavy cream as a base, cream scones can feel like a morning indulgence. Ultra-tender and cake-like, they’re softer than butter-based scones. Reason to love them: They’re quick and easy to make and don’t require working the fat into the dry ingredients.”
If your recipe calls for 113g of butter and 113g of milk, simply swap these out for 227g of heavy cream.
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The secret ingredient for light, fluffy scones is lemonade. The carbon dioxide in the fizzy drink acts as a leavening agent, much like baking powder or yeast, aerating the scones for a lighter texture. Plus, it adds a subtle sweet lemony note to the flavour profile.
Culinary website Taste.com.au recommends a mix of 125ml of thick cream and 125ml lemonade for irresistibly soft and sweet scones. For an extra citrus kick, try serving with a dollop of lemon curd and cream instead of traditional jam.
They confess: “I really dislike rubbing butter into flour to make scones. There, I said it. The bench always seems to be the wrong height, my hands get tired, and it takes forever. All the planets aligned the day I discovered lemonade scones.”
“No pesky fridge-cold butter that refuses to yield to the flour. Instead, cream takes its place, adding the necessary fat plus tenderising the scones,” they added.
“Milk gives way for lemonade, which not only provides liquid, but also flavour and, best of all, the bubbles in the lemonade aerate the dough, helping the scones rise evenly.”